Prostate Cancer and Spirituality: A Systematic Review.

The diagnosis, treatment, and sequels of cancer are relevant sources of stress, conflicts, and suffering, but spirituality may be a positive coping element. However, studies involving the correlation between prostate cancer patients and spirituality are few and heterogeneous. MEDLINE (PUBMED), SCOPUS, and EMBASE were the databases used for this review with the keywords "spirituality," "religion," and "prostate cancer.

Multicenter Database of Patients with Germ-Cell Tumors: A Latin American Cooperative Oncology Group Registry (LACOG 0515).

Introduction: Germ-cell tumors (GCTs) are the most common malignancy in young men. There is a paucity of data on GCTs in developing countries. LACOG 0515 study aimed to evaluate clinical characteristics and treatment outcomes in patients with GCTs from Brazilian cancer centers.

Consensus on the Treatment and Follow-Up for the Nonmetastatic Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer: A Report From the First Prostate Cancer Consensus Conference for Developing Countries.

Purpose: To present a summary of the recommendations for the treatment and follow-up for the biochemical recurrence of castration-resistant prostate cancer (PCa) as acquired through a questionnaire administered at the Prostate Cancer Consensus Conference for Developing Countries.

Methods: A total of 27 questions were identified as relating to this topic. Responses from the clinician were tallied and are presented in percentage format.

Prognostic Value of Systemic Inflammatory Biomarkers in Patients with Metastatic Renal Cell Carcinoma.

Metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC) encompasses a heterogeneous group of neoplasms with distinct clinical behavior and prognoses. As a result of the increasing number of therapeutic options in the metastatic setting, it is crucial to improve prognostic stratification ability. We aimed to evaluate the prognostic value of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) and combination platelet count and neutrophil lymphocyte ratio (COP-NLR) in patients with mRCC.

Real-world evidence on first-line treatment for metastatic renal cell carcinoma with non-clear cell and sarcomatoid histologies: are sunitinib and pazopanib interchangeable?

Introduction: Non-clear cell renal cell carcinoma (nccRCC) and sarcomatoid renal cell carcinoma (sRCC) are underrepresented in clinical trials. Treatment approaches are frequently extrapolated from data of clear cell renal cell carcinoma, in which pazopanib is non-inferior to sunitinib. We aim to compare the effectiveness of first-line sunitinib and pazopanib for nccRCC and sRCC.

Clinical Characteristics and Treatment Outcomes of Patients With Advanced Germ Cell Tumor Treated at a Tertiary Cancer Center in Brazil.

Purpose: Reported treatment outcomes for patients with advanced germ cell tumors (aGCT) are based mainly on series from developed nations. Data from low- and middle-income countries are underrepresented.

Material And Methods: From 2000 to 2015, a retrospective analysis identified 300 patients with aGCT treated at our institution.

Efficacy and Safety of Docetaxel in Elderly Patients With Metastatic Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer.

Purpose: Limited data are available about the tolerability and clinical outcomes of elderly patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) who are treated with docetaxel. We evaluated the efficacy and safety of docetaxel as first-line chemotherapy for patients with mCRPC who were treated in our institution.

Materials And Methods: We retrospectively identified patients with mCRPC and a Karnosfky performance status of 60% or greater treated with docetaxel on any schedule as first-line chemotherapy between 2008 and 2013.

Analysis of Efficacy and Toxicity Profile of First-Line Sunitinib or Pazopanib in Metastatic Clear Cell Renal Cell Carcinoma in the Brazilian Population.

Purpose Sunitinib and pazopanib are multitargeted tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) that act against vascular endothelial growth factor receptors and are standard first-line treatment options for metastatic clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC). The Brazilian public health system diverges from the randomized clinical trials in the availability of first and subsequent lines of treatment and in clinical and demographic characteristics of patients. Therefore, it is essential to describe the history of advanced ccRCC during and after TKI treatment in this population.

Gene expression profile of renal cell carcinomas after neoadjuvant treatment with sunitinib: new pathways revealed.

Background: In renal cell carcinoma (RCC) of the clear cell type, inactivity of the VHL gene induces overexpression of HIF1 α and its targets, the tyrosine kinase receptors, promoting RCC development and progression. The discovery of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) changed the treatment of these tumors. Other molecular pathways involved in the TKI mechanisms of action have not been described in the literature.

Activity and safety of sunitinib in poor risk metastatic renal cell carcinoma patients.

Purpose: To assess the activity, safety and treatment patterns of sunitinib in patients with poor-risk metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC).

Materials And Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the charts of poor risk patients treated with sunitinib from October 2006 to July 2013 who met the eligibility criteria. The primary endpoint was overall survival (OS).

Metronomic oral cyclophosphamide plus prednisone in docetaxel-pretreated patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer.

We evaluated the efficacy and safety of metronomic oral cyclophosphamide (CTX) and prednisone in metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) patients. We analyzed retrospectively patients with mCRPC previously treated with docetaxel, and who received metronomic CTX (from 50 mg PO daily to 150 mg PO, 14 days/7 days off) and prednisone 10 mg PO daily between September 2009 and April 2014 were analyzed. The primary endpoint was prostate-specific antigen (PSA) decrease ≥50 %.

Expanding androgen- and androgen receptor signaling-directed therapies for castration-resistant prostate cancer.

The treatment landscape of castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) has been dramatically changed over the past years with the approval of several new drugs for clinical use. These include androgen axis-targeted therapy and novel drugs with different mechanisms of action, including immunotherapy (sipuleucel-T), radiopharmaceuticals (radium-223), and chemotherapy (cabazitaxel). Based on the growing knowledge that the main driver for patients progressing on standard androgen deprivation therapy is persistent activation of the androgen receptor (AR) signaling axis, new drugs were developed and demonstrated significant efficacy in recent clinical trials, leading to the approval of abiraterone and enzalutamide in several countries.

Renal medullary carcinoma response to chemotherapy: a referral center experience in Brazil.

Renal medullary carcinoma (RMC) is rare, accounting for less than 1% of all renal neoplasms. Case reports suggest RMC is highly aggressive, poorly responsive to chemotherapy, often metastatic at diagnosis, affects young men with sickle cell trait, and median overall survival (mOS) is less than 12 months. We report the epidemiological characteristics, treatments performed, response rate to each treatment and mOS of five patients with RMC.

Multiagent chemotherapy for metastatic adenocarcinoma of the seminal vesicle.

Adenocarcinoma of the seminal vesicle is a rare condition, with fewer than 60 cases described in the literature. Most reports highlight the histopathological characteristics of the tumor; however, the role of chemotherapy, especially in the metastatic setting, is poorly described. In this paper, we describe a patient with metastatic disease, who sustained a response to modified FOLFOX6 as first-line therapy.

[Ischemic stroke after chemotherapy with cisplatin, etoposide and bleomycin: case report].

A 20-year-old man with a germ cell tumor who experienced an ischemic stroke as a complication of cisplatin/etoposide/bleomycin based chemotherapy is reported. The previously reported cases are reviewed as well as the different physiopathologic mechanisms associated with vascular toxicity of this regimen.